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ir>ne 


DEC  1  8 19136 

DEC  18 

JUL  1  9 1988 

APR17  »*» 
M  q  3  m 

JUN  0  1  1J92 


s 


L161— O-1096 


53^ 
17 


Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea 

and 

Neighboring  Regions 

BY 

ALBERT  B.  LEWIS 

Assistant  Curator  of  Melanesian  Ethnology 


m 


ILLINOIS 

Anthropology 
Leaflet  17 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY 

CHICAGO 

1924 


The  Anthropological  Leaflets  of  Field  Museum  are  designed  to 
give  brief,  non-technical  accounts  of  some  of  the  more  interesting 
beliefs,  habits  and  customs  of  the  races  whose  life  is  illustrated 
in  the  Museum's  exhibits. 

LIST  OF  ANTHROPOLOGY  LEAFLETS  ISSUED  TO  DATE 

1.  The  Chinese  Gateway $  .10 

2.  The  Philippine  Forge  Group 10 

3.  The  Japanese  Collections 25 

4.  New  Guinea  Masks 25 

5.  The  Thunder  Ceremony  of  the  Pawnee 25 

6.  The  Sacrifice  to  the  Morning  Star  by  the 

Skidi  Pawnee 10 

7.  Purification  of  the  Sacred  Bundles,  a  Ceremony 

of  the  Pawnee 10 

8.  Annual  Ceremony  of  the  Pawnee  Medicine  Men      .         .10 

9.  The  Use  of  Sago  in  New  Guinea 10 

10.  Use  of  Human  Skulls  and  Bones  in  Tibet        ...         .10 

11.  The  Japanese  New  Year's  Festival,  Games 

and  Pastimes 25 

12.  Japanese  Costume 25 

13.  Gods  and  Heroes  of  Japan 25 

14.  Japanese  Temples  and  Houses 25 

15.  Use  of  Tobacco  among  North  American  Indians     .         .25 

16.  Use  of  Tobacco  in  Mexico  and  South  America    .     .         .25 

17.  Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea 10 

18.  Tobacco  and  Its  Use  in  Asia 25 

19.  Introduction  of  Tobacco  into  Europe 25 

20.  The  Japanese  Sword  and  Its  Decoration 25 

D.  C.  DAVIES 

DIRECTOR 
FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY 
CHICAGO,  U.  S.  A. 


I  /<_  lit 

^3*  FEB  12  1925 

jNiVERSITY  Of  ILLINOIS 
Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

DEPARTMENT  OF  ANTHROPOLOGY 
Chicago,  1924 

Leaflet  Number  17 

Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea  and 
Neighboring  Regions 

There  is  no  single  object  of  trade  more  useful  to 
the  traveller  and  trader  in  New  Guinea  than  tobacco. 
It  often  supplies  a  standard  of  value,  and  serves  as 
minor  currency;  a  day's  labor,  for  example,  being 
worth  so  many  sticks.  The  trade  tobacco  in  use 
throughout  eastern  New  Guinea  and  Melanesia  is  the 
Virginia  twist  or  stick  tobacco.  In  the  Dutch  territory, 
a  fine-cut  smoking  tobacco,  put  up  in  special  paper 
packages,  is  the  only  variety  acceptable  to  the  natives. 
Ordinary  wooden  or  clay  pipes  are  also  in  demand,  but 
to  a  less  degree,  as  they  last  for  some  time  and  also 
are  not  always  used  by  the  natives,  who  often  avail 
themselves  of  native-rolled  cigarettes  or  native  pipes. 
This  brings  up  the  fact  that  in  many  regions  the  natives 
have  their  own  way  of  smoking  (chewing  is  unknown), 
and  utilized  their  own  native-grown  tobacco  long  be- 
fore the  trader's  tobacco  became  known  to  them.  While 
tobacco  was  known  and  smoked  by  most  of  the  coastal 
tribes,  in  the  interior  mountains  its  use  and  cultivation 
is  almost  universal,  as  nearly  every  mountain  tribe  so 
far  visited,  including  the  pygmies,  raises  its  own 
tobacco.  Tobacco  has  also  been  reported  as  growing, 
apparently  wild,  along  the  trails  in  the  high  mountain 
ranges  back  of  Port  Moresby.  In  the  Arfak  Mountains 
of  western  New  Guinea  tobacco  has  been  raised, 
smoked,  and  traded  to  the  coastal  peoples  since  the 
memory  of  man,  according  to  one  writer.  This  trade 
was  noted  by  A.  R.  Wallace  in  1856,  who  figures  a  crude 
wooden  pipe  somewhat  like  Fig.  5,  PI.  II. 

[46] 


2  Field  Museum  op  Natural  History 

Tobacco  was  not  everywhere  used  by  the  coasta 
peoples,  but  when  it  was,  it  was  usually  obtained  bj 
trade  from  the  interior.  In  the  valleys  of  the  Sepil 
(Kaiser in  Augusta)  and  Fly  Rivers  tobacco  is  alsc 
extensively  cultivated  in  many  places.  Along  the  Sepil 
River  the  leaves  are  crudely  dried,  and  put  up  for  trad< 
in  large  rolls  or  packages  about  two  feet  long  and  eighi 
to  ten  inches  in  diameter.  For  personal  use  the  leave* 
are  either  carried  loose  in  a  small  string  bag,  or  a  fe^ 
are  placed  in  a  bamboo  tube  or  box.  These  boxes  arc 
often  decorated  with  elaborate  designs. 

On  the  south  coast  tobacco  was  cultivated  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Fly  River  and  also  on  the  neighboring 
islands  of  Torres  Straits.  Here,  according  to  a  reporl 
of  1836,  "they  also  cultivated  the  tobacco  plant,  whicl 
they  prepare  for  smoking  by  drying  the  leaves  anc 
twisting  them  up  into  figs."  Other  early  writers  speal 
of  tobacco  being  made  up  into  a  three-stranded  plait 

Considerable  care  is  usually  devoted  to  the  cul- 
tivation of  tobacco.  One  of  the  Papuan  governmenl 
officials  writes  of  the  region  between  the  Fly  and  the 
Dutch  border  as  follows :  "A  very  interesting  feature 
is  the  skillful  cultivation  of  tobacco,  which  is  of  fine 
quality,  although  the  larger  leaves  become  coarse  anc 
ribbed.  Every  village  contains  many  beds  of  the  plant 
old  house  sites  being  selected  for  the  purpose,  possiblj 
because  of  the  well  manured  soil.  The  walls  are  removed 
before  planting,  and  the  plot  is  well  dug  and  mixec 
with  ashes.  The  roof  is  left.  As  the  seedlings  become 
stronger,  the  roof  is  gradually  removed  till  only  the 
frame  remains.  The  leaves  are  collected  and  dried  in 
the  sun  and  in  the  houses;  they  are  then  packed  ir 
plaited  rolls  ranging  up  to  six  feet  or  so  in  length." 
On  the  Sepik  River  the  seed  beds  are  made  under  the 
houses.  The  young  plants  are  transplanted  to  the 
fields,  but  are  for  a  time  shielded  from  the  direct  rays 
of  the  sun  by  palm  leaves. 

[46] 


THE  HBittRY 
OF  m 

L.  ._;__  ;     .5 


LEAFLET  17. 


PLATE  I. 


'■-u  AizJ£ 


firn  ~irrrrTfl 


NATIVE  TAKING  A  PULL  FROM  THE   SMALL   HOLE  OF  A   BAMBOO  TOBACCO    PIPE   THAT 
HAS  BEEN  PASSED  TO  HIM.      PORT  MORESBY,   PAPUA. 


ENJOYING  A  SMOKE  AFTER   THE    DANCE.       THE   SHORT   CIGARETTE    MAY   BE    SEEN    IN 
THE  HOLE  NEAR  THE  LOWER  END  OF  THE  PIPE.       GONA  BAY,   N.    E.   PAPUA. 


Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea  3 

The  natives  of  New  Guinea  do  not  chew  tobacco, 
but  smoke  it  either  in  peculiar  bamboo  or  wooden  pipes 
of  their  own  manufacture,  or  as  cigarettes.  Along 
most  of  the  north  coast  of  New  Guinea  pipes  are  not 
used.  If  the  leaves  are  dry  enough,  they  are  somewhat 
crumbled  and  rolled  up  in  a  piece  of  the  leaf  of  some 
other  plant,  used  as  a  wrapper.  In  some  places  a  piece 
of  a  banana  leaf  is  preferred.  In  other  places  the  leaf 
of  the  Pandanus,  Hibiscus,  or  other  tree  may  be  used. 
After  wrapping,  it  is  usually  necessary  to  tie  it  with  a 
piece  of  fibre  to  keep  the  leaf  from  unrolling.  When 
the  natives  can  get  it,  they  often  like  paper  for  this 
purpose,  and  old  newspapers  are  frequently  excellent 
objects  for  trade.  The  size  of  a  native  cigarette  is 
about  that  of  an  ordinary  cigar  or  smaller.  If  no  dry 
tobacco  leaves  are  at  hand,  a  partly  dry  or  green  leaf 
is  held  over  the  fire,  or  laid  on  the  coals  till  dry  enough 
to  serve  the  purpose. 

In  the  interior  tobacco  is  smoked  either  as  cig- 
arettes or  with  a  short  reed  or  bamboo  tube  which 
serves  as  a  sort  of  cigarette  holder.  Wollaston  reports 
that  the  Tapiro  pygmies,  living  in  the  far  interior 
mountains  of  Dutch  New  Guinea,  "smoke  tobacco 
chiefly  as  cigarettes,  using  for  the  wrapper  a  thin  slip 
of  dry  Pandanus  leaf.  When,  as  is  often  the  case,  the 
wrapper  is  very  narrow,  and  the  tobacco  is  inclined 
to  escape,  the  man  smokes  his  cigarette  in  a  peculiar 
manner ;  he  holds  the  unlighted  end  in  his  fingers  and 
with  his  mouth  draws  out  the  smoke  from  between  the 
edges  of  the  wrapper  in  the  middle  of  the  cigarette; 
this  he  continues  to  do  until  the  cigarette  is  about  half 
consumed,  when  he  puts  the  end  in  his  mouth  in  the 
ordinary  way.  The  Tapiro  also  smoke  tobacco  in  a 
pipe  in  a  fashion  of  their  own.  The  pipe  is  a  simple 
cylinder  of  bamboo  about  an  inch  in  diameter  and  a 
few  inches  in  length.  A  small  plug  of  tobacco  is  rolled 
up  and  pushed  down  to  about  the  middle  of  the  pipe, 

[47] 


4  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

and  the  smoker,  holding  it  upright  between  his  lips, 
draws  out  the  smoke  from  below."  This  method  of 
smoking  is  not  unique,  however.  Several  hundred 
miles  to  the  eastward,  on  the  headwaters  of  the  Tedi, 
a  tributary  of  the  Fly,  a  Papuan  government  official 
found  a  similar  custom.  "The  type  of  pipe  used  is  very 
primitive  and  resembles  a  large  cigarette  holder  more 
than  a  pipe.  It  consists  of  a  straight  or  curved  piece 
of  bamboo,  from  nine  to  eighteen  inches  long,  and  from 
one-half  to  three-fourths  of  an  inch  in  diameter.  The 
tobacco,  wrapped  in  a  small  piece  of  leaf,  is  inserted 
in  the  hole  at  the  end  of  the  holder,  and  the  smoke 
is  drawn  through  the  hollow  stem.  Teased  sago-leaf 
fibre  is  pushed  down  the  pipe  through  which  the  smoke 
is  drawn  to  purify  it  before  it  reaches  the  mouth. 
Natives  were  seen  inhaling  the  smoke  through  the 
nostrils  and  blowing  it  out  through  the  mouth,  but  this 
is  not  usual."  The  interior  of  this  portion  of  New 
Guinea  is  almost  entirely  unknown,  but  small  reed  and 
bamboo  tubes  used  for  tobacco  smoking  are  reported 
from  the  northern  side  of  the  interior  mountains  in 
the  Dutch  territory.  One  of  these  pipes  has  a  hollow 
nut  on  the  end,  with  an  opening  on  the  far  side  for  the 
tobacco. 


BAMBOO  PIPE  WITH  UPRIGHT, 

FROM  TIRIO,    LOWER  FLY  RIVER,    NEW  GUINEA. 

-J-  actual  size. 


[48] 


Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea  5 

Throughout  most  of  the  Fly  valley  and  the  coastal 
plain  on  either  side,  the  type  of  pipe  used  is  more 
elaborate.  It  consists  of  two  parts.  The  main  portion 
is  a  section  of  bamboo  open  at  one  end,  but  closed  at 
the  other  by  one  of  the  nodal  partitions.  A  small  hole 
is  made  on  one  side  near  the  closed  end.  This  tube  is 
fairly  large,  varying  from  one  to  three  or  four  feet 
long,  and  from  one  and  a  half  to  three  or  more  inches 
in  diameter.  A  much  smaller  and  shorter  tube,  up  to 
a  foot  in  length,  is  fitted  into  the  small  hole  on  the  side, 
so  as  to  stand  up  at  right  angles  to  the  larger 
tube.  The  cavity  of  this  small  tube  is  usually  en- 
larged somewhat  at  the  top,  and  in  this  is  placed 
the  tobacco,  either  rolled  up  in  a  leaf  or  in  the  form 
of  a  cigarette. 

Throughout  the  eastern  end  of  New  Guinea,  from 
the  Papuan  Gulf  on  the  south  side  and  the  Huon  Gulf 
on  the  north,  the  pipe  (baubau)  is  the  same,  but  with- 
out the  upright,  the  tobacco  in  the  form  of  a  cigarette 
being  stuck  or  held  in  the  small  hole  on  top  of  the  pipe. 
These  pipes  are  often  very  nicely  ornamented  with 
incised  or  burnt  designs  (Figs.  1  and  2,  PI.  II).  In 
smoking  these  pipes  the  usual  custom  is  to  place 
the  mouth  at  the  opening  at  the  end  of  the  pipe, 
and  draw  the  smoke  in  till  the  pipe  is  full. 
Then  the  hand  is  placed  over  the  end,  the  upright 
or  cigarette  is  removed,  and  the  smoke  drawn  out 
through  the  hole  at  the  side.  The  pipe  is  usually 
passed  around,  each  person  taking  a  pull  or  two.  The 
women  frequently  prepare  the  pipe  and  pass  it  to  the 
men.  Sometimes  the  pipe  is  filled  by  placing  the  mouth 
over  the  glowing  end  of  the  cigarette  or  the  bowl  of 
the  upright,  and  blowing  the  smoke  into  the  pipe.  In- 
dividual smokers  may  also  keep  the  pipe  to  themselves, 
simply  drawing  the  smoke  through  the  larger  tube, 
as  is  illustrated  in  Plate  I,  which  shows  the  men  re- 
freshing themselves  after  a  dance.      Smoking,  along 

[49] 


6  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

the  coast  at  least,  does  not  seem  to  have  any  special 
significance,  and  is  practised  by  the  women  and,  in 
most  localities,  children,  as  well  as  by  the  men. 

In  the  Arfak  Mountains  of  western  New  Guinea 
a  peculiar  wooden  pipe  is  used.  It  is  cut  out  of  a  single 
piece  of  brownish  wood,  and  consists  chiefly  of  a  bowl 
for  the  tobacco,  with  a  very  short  stem  or  mouthpiece 
on  the  side,  and  a  projection  at  the  back  or  below  to 
hold  it  by,  as  shown  in  Figs.  4  and  5,  Plate  II.  Fig.  3 
shows  a  double  pipe  of  a  very  unusual  type  from  the 
same  region.  A  wooden  bowl,  made  out  of  a  section 
of  a  limb  of  a  tree,  with  a  hole  on  the  side  for  the 
stem,  is  illustrated  in  Fig.  6. 

The  tobacco  grown  in  the  interior  highlands  is 
said  to  be  of  excellent  quality,  and  though  strong  in 
flavor,  due  to  the  crude  method  of  preparation,  not  at 
all  unpleasant  to  smoke.  That  grown  nearer  the  coast 
is  very  strong,  and  the  method  of  smoking  with  the 
bamboo  pipe  doubtless  adds  to  its  effectiveness.  Had- 
don  says,  "The  effect  of  this  kind  of  smoking  appears 
to  be  very  severe.  The  men  always  seem  quite  dazed 
for  a  second  or  two  or  even  longer  after  a  single  in- 
halation, but  they  enjoy  it  greatly  and  prize  tobacco 
very  highly.  I  have  seen  an  old  man  reel  and  stagger 
from  the  effects  of  one  pull  at  the  pipe."  Jukes  says 
of  the  Erub  people,  "In  smoking  their  own  tobacco 
(which  is  of  a  light  brown  color),  they  break  off  a 
piece  from  the  plait  into  which  the  leaves  are  twisted, 
and  wrap  it  in  a  green  leaf  to  prevent  its  setting  fire 
to  the  wooden  bowl.  A  woman  is  then  deputed  to  fill 
the  bamboo  with  smoke,  and  on  its  being  passed  round, 
each  person  takes  a  long  draught  of  smoke,  which  he 
swallows,  apparently  with  considerable  effort,  and 
stands  motionless  a  few  seconds,  as  if  convulsed,  with 
the  tears  in  his  eyes ;  he  then  respires  deeply,  and  seems 
to  recover.   They  call  it  'eree  oora'  (eri  ur,  .'to  drink 

[50] 


Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea  7 

heat  or  fire'),  and,  patting  their  stomachs,  seem  much 
comforted  after  it.  I  tried  their  tobacco,  but  found  it 
intolerably  hot  and  strong."  Macgillivray  offers  sim- 
ilar testimony,  "On  several  occasions  at  Cape  York  I 
have  seen  a  native  so  affected  by  a  single  inhalation  as 
to  be  rendered  nearly  senseless,  with  the  perspiration 
bursting  out  at  every  pore,  and  require  a  draught  of 
water  to  restore  him;  and,  although  myself  a  smoker, 
yet  on  the  only  occasion  when  I  tried  this  method  of 
using  tobacco,  the  sensations  of  nausea  and  faintness 
were  produced." 

Haddon  continues,  "A  white  acquaintance  of  mine 
who  at  one  time  took  to  smoking  the  Papuan  pipe 
gave  me  the  following  account  of  his  experiences. 
The  inhaled  smoke  is  retained  for  as  long  as  pos- 
sible and  let  out  through  the  mouth  and  nose. 
There  is  a  very  strong  draught  through  the  pipe 
which  drives  the  smoke  right  into  the  lungs.  On 
the  first  occasion  this  nearly  chokes  a  person,  and 
this  experience  generally  satisfies  all  curiosity. 
After  a  single  inhalation  the  confirmed  smoker  feels 
happy  and  sleepy ;  the  effect  is  much  the  same  as  with 
opium,  but  with  none  of  the  illusions;  all  the  senses 
are  deadened,  and  after  a  whiff  or  two,  the  smoker 
goes  off  into  a  deep,  heavy,  but  not  refreshing  sleep. 
The  smoke  is  quite  cool.  My  informant  smoked  in  this 
manner  for  about  six  months,  but  had  to  leave  it  off 
as  his  heart  became  affected,  but  not  his  lungs.  The 
heart's  action  was  weakened,  and  he  had  a  dry  barking 
cough.  The  smoking  made  him  generally  lazy  and  in- 
dolent, but  extremely  nervous.  He  always  took  a  pull 
when  the  effect  of  the  last  wore  off,  and  had  a  great 
hankering  after  it." 

Mention  has  been  made  above  of  smoking  at  Cape 
York.  This  is  the  most  northern  point  of  Australia 
near  the  islands  of  Torres  Straits.  The  bamboo  pipe  is 

[51] 


8  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

in  use  in  several  places  around  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria, 
and  has  undoubtedly  been  introduced  from  the  Islands. 
This  is  the  only  part  of  Australia  where  tobacco  is 
smoked,  but  the  wild  native  Australian  tobacco  is 
chewed  throughout  a  large  part  of  central  and  western 
Australia.  For  this  purpose  the  dried  leaves  are  used, 
frequently  mixed  with  some  other  substance.  One 
writer  reports  the  usual  method  for  central  Australia 
to  be  as  follows :  "The  variety  preferred  is  that  grow- 
ing on  the  tops  of  stony  ranges ;  of  this  the  leaves  and 
stems  are  dried  in  the  sun.  These  are  then  ground 
into  powder,  which  is  mixed  with  an  equal  quantity 
of  the  white  ash  of  the  leaves  and  fine  twigs  of  Cassia 
eremophila  if  available,  if  not,  of  those  parts  of  some 
other  bush,  and  the  mass  is  made  into  a  bolus  of  suit- 
able size  with  saliva.  This  is  chewed  and  passed  from 
mouth  to  mouth,  a  bolus  lasting  about  twenty-four 
hours.  When  not  in  use  it  is  carried  behind  the  ear 
or  in  the  head  or  arm  band.  The  lubras  (women)  are 
allowed  to  chew  the  plant  only  in  the  natural  state." 
The  Australian  tobacco  is  a  distinct  species,  Nicotiana 
suaveolens.  According  to  Mr.  Maiden,  the  Australian 
botanist,  the  samples  he  has  seen  of  the  New  Guinea 
plant  (leaves  and  petioles)  cannot  be  the  N.  tabacum, 
the  common  cultivated  tobacco,  and  are  "not  very  re- 
mote" from  the  Australian  species. 

In  the  Melanesian  islands  tobacco  has  been  re- 
cently introduced,  and  is  cultivated  in  several  localities. 
In  a  few  places,  however,  it  was  cultivated  before  the 
recent  arrival  of  Europeans,  and  this  use  was  probably 
an  extension  of  its  use  in  New  Guinea.  All  over  west- 
ern New  Britain  tobacco  is  cultivated  and  smoked,  as 
native  cigarettes,  both  with  and  without  a  bamboo  tube 
or  pipe.  The  pipe  here  used  is  open  at  both  ends,  and 
the  cigarette  is  simply  held  by  the  hand  in  the  outer 
end  of  the  tube. 

Tobacco  is  also    raised  by   the    Baining,  a  non- 

[52] 


Use  of  Tobacco  in  New  Guinea  9 

Melanesian  people  living,  in  the  mountains  of  the  Ga- 
zelle Peninsula,  northeastern  New  Britain.  Here  the 
native-made  cigarette  is  smoked  in  a  small  bamboo 
tube,  used  as  holder.  The  coastal  tribes  of  this  part 
of  the  island  neither  cultivated  nor  smoked  tobacco  till 
the  traders  introduced  it. 

Tobacco  has  also  been  cultivated  in  the  north- 
western Solomon  Islands,  Buka  and  Bougainville,  as 
far  back  as  any  record  goes.  In  Bougainville,  the  larg- 
est, wildest,  and  most  mountainous  of  all  the  Solomon 
Islands,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  there  are  three 
distinct  methods  of  preparing  the  leaf  for  market, 
practised  in  different  parts  of  the  island.  In  the  north- 
western half  it  is  put  up  in  short  plaits,  in  the  central 
region  it  is  rolled  or  twisted  into  sausage-like  rolls, 
while  in  the  southeastern  the  dried  leaves  are  merely 
strung  together  on  a  cord.  The  natives  also  distinguish 
three  separate  varieties,  according  to  quality  and 
flavor.  The  pipes  used  in  this  region  are  of  burnt  clay, 
apparently  an  imitation  of  European  pipes.  Some  have 
wooden  stems,  but  usually  the  bowl  and  stem  are  made 
in  one  piece  (Figs.  7-9,  PI.  II) .  The  natives  make  very 
good  clay  pots  and  vessels,  and  how  long  they  have  been 
making  these  clay  pipes  is  not  known,  or  whether  their 
use  was  preceded  by  a  different  method  of  smoking. 
Parkinson  says  that  before  about  1890  the  native.made 
pipe  had  only  a  crude  clay  bowl,  with  a  small  bamboo 
tube  as  stem.  Probably  the  clay  bowl  was  added  to  an 
original  native  bamboo  tube,  such  as  is  still  used  in 
New  Britain. 

While  the  native  tobacco  is  known  and  used 
throughout  most  of  New  Guinea,  there  are  certain 
areas  where  it  is  not  used,  and  where  it  is  apparently 
unknown,  such  as  a  large  part  of  the  coastal  plains 
south  of  the  mountains  in  Dutch  New  Guinea.  In  other 
regions  there  is  evidence  that  it  is  of  fairly  recent  in- 
troduction.  On  the  other  hand,  in  the  areas  where  it 

[53] 


10  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

is  principally  cultivated  no  one  seems  to  know  how 
long  it  has  been  in  use.  In  some  places  the  natives  de- 
clare that  tobacco  was  known  "to  the  extreme  length 
of  their  traditions"  (Monckton).  One  of  the  legends 
of  the  Kiwai  Islanders  (mouth  of  Fly  River) ,  for  ex- 
ample, tells  how  the  people  learned  the  use  of  tobacco 
from  their  culture  hero  at  the  same  time  that  they 
were  taught  the  use  of  coconuts,  bananas,  sago,  and 
their  other  native  foods.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that 
the  betel  nut,  though  now  extensively  used,  is  not  in- 
cluded in  that  list.  Also  along  the  coast  where  the  use 
of  the  betel  nut  is  most  in  evidence,  tobacco  is  less 
frequently  used  and  less  important  than  in  the  interior, 
where,  in  many  places  at  least,  the  chewing  of  the 
betel  is  unknown.  The  names  used  for  native  tobacco 
also  vary  greatly  in  different  regions.  Altogether  the 
facts  seem  to  point  to  an  ancient  use  of  an  indigenous 
New  Guinea  species  of  tobacco  probably  closely  related 
to  the  Australian  species. 

Albert  B.  Lewis. 


[64] 


LEAFLET   17. 


PLATE  II. 


BAMBOO  PIPE  WITH   INCISED  DESIGNS,  MEKEO  DISTRICT,  PAPUA.      2,    BAMBOO  PIPE  WITH 
BURNT  DESIGNS.       THE  SMALL  HOLE  IS  NEAR  THE  UPPER  END,  CENTRAL  DISTRICT, 
PAPUA.       3-6,   WOOD  PIPES,   ARFAK  MOUNTAINS,    DUTCH  NEW  GUINEA. 
7-9,   CLAY  PIPES,    BUKA,    SOLOMON   ISLANDS. 


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